Blue Ridge Country September/October 2021 - 90

GUEST COLUMN
The Power of the Parkway
and Partnerships
Carolyn Ward's distinguished career has spanned three decades
from field interpreter at Hungry Mother State Park to CEO of the
Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation. She was born in the Blue Ridge
Mountains in Southwestern Virginia, graduated from Emory and
Henry College and received her Master's degree and Ph.D. from
Virginia Tech in Forestry. She is a decorated professor and awardwinning
researcher and author whose life's work has been dedicated
to building bridges and making connections.
By CAROLYN WARD
was born in Southwest Virginia, which, according
to my mom, is the center of the Universe. I spent
my summer days exploring the ridges of our farm
and listening to stories of the life and lore of the
Blue Ridge from my dad. One of my most special
memories was going on long drives and being so
excited about what we would see around the next
turn. Of those journeys, the Blue Ridge Parkway was one
of my favorites.
I
When I grew up, I learned that the parkway was not
just an ordinary road. It was part of the National Park
Service. A unique national park that connects us all, a
journey that binds us together. Traversing two states
and 29 counties as it travels the length of the Blue Ridge
Mountains, the Blue Ridge Parkway links an enormous
diversity of life from the rich arts, history and culture
found in its neighboring communities to one of the
largest collections of flora and fauna in the United
States. More than just the largest landscape architecture
construction project in the history of the United States,
the Parkway is a journey connecting the lives, economies,
and communities of the Blue Ridge Mountains.
The Blue Ridge Parkway is not just an extraordinary
experience laid across the spine of some of the oldest
mountains in the world, but serves as an economic engine
for the hundreds of mountain communities that
dot its path from Shenandoah National Park to Great
Smoky Mountains National Park. Each year, more people
visit the Blue Ridge Parkway than Yellowstone, Yosemite
and the Grand Canyon combined. In 2020, more
90 BLUERIDGECOUNTRY.COM
than 14 million people visited from across the globe.
A recent study indicates these visitors generate more
than $1.3 billion of economic impact in communities
adjacent to the Blue Ridge Parkway, and support 15,500
local jobs, more than any other park unit in the country.
Despite its critical importance to life and livelihood in
rural Appalachia, the Blue Ridge Parkway has suffered
from budget shortfalls for years. With no entry fees, the
parkway receives the budget equivalent of only about
$1 per visitor to operate and maintain the 469 miles of
the motor road, more than 360 miles of trails, 14 visitor
centers, eight campgrounds and 91 historical buildings.
As the CEO of the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation,
I have worked to build partnerships with communities
large and small, donors from across the country and
those committed to making our park an even better
place. Over the past 24 years, the Foundation's Community
of Stewards has provided more than $18 million in
funding and support for the parkway, creating positive
impacts for generations.
The mountains may physically divide the communities
along the parkway but bind us together in deeper
ways. There are economic, natural resource and cultural
ties that link us all and by joining together and strengthening
the connections that exist; we will all be stronger
in health and wellness, in our economic stability and in
our environmental and culture futures. We can better
manage our resources if we are a collective. Together, we
can ensure the future for our park, our communities and
the mountains that link us as one.
http://www.BLUERIDGECOUNTRY.COM
Blue Ridge Country September/October 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Blue Ridge Country September/October 2021
